Winsted Karate Club aims to be the best

Suddenly, Stifter releases a fury of punches at Neff's
face. Each punch is very rapid and his gi (the karate uniform) snaps from
the speed of the blow.

Neff doesn't even flinch. He knows that Stifter, a fourth
degree black belt, will control his blows no matter how hard or fast he
punches. Each blow lands between an inch and an inch-and-one-half from the
protruded chin.

This is a demonstration of control, one of the many aspects
of karate that is taught at the Winsted Karate Club.

Started by Al and Jeri Morland in 1982, the club was originally
sponsored by the Winsted Police Department in an effort, according to Neff,
to give the youths in Winsted something to do.

However, with a number of black belts and national champions,
the club has turned into something more.

Kata

Kata means form in Japanese. In karate, kata is a series
of sequential punches, kicks, and blocks that students are taught repetitively.

They are repeated so often that the student reacts instinctively
when attacked.

"You don't have to think. You just react. Just like
you train your foot to hit the brake at the right time," said Neff.

The type of karate that is taught at the club is called
Shotokan Karate. It is a form that traces back to the early 1900s in Japan.

Its founder was a man by the name of Gichin Funakoshi,
who learned in Japanese occupied Okinawa.

"He learned it from some of the old masters back when
karate was illegal in Japan. It was always secret. They'd do it at night
because the government of Japan didn't allow weapons or martial arts to
be trained in Okinawa," Neff said.

In 1923, the emperor of Japan saw a demonstration, and
was so impressed that he ordered that it become a mandatory athletic class
in schools.

Neff joined the Morlands for their first class in 1982.
He had been training in St. Cloud when he saw the ad in the paper for the
new club.

In 1983, Stifter became a member. He had been introduced
to karate through Holy Trinity's Snowfest week.

A year later, the Morlands left, and Neff became the chief
instructor. By 1988, Neff stepped aside to become the director, and Stifter
was assigned chief instructor.

As black belts who have achieved fourth and fifth degree
respectively, Neff and Stifter are not only well-versed in the basics and
applications of karate, they are the only ones in the area.

Kumite

Kumite is one of two types of competition in karate. The
other is kata, which is competition of forms.

Kumite is sparring and participants are awarded a point
or half point for a good, legal blow. The decision is up to five judges.

The Winsted Karate Club is well versed in kumite. Over
the years, it has produced an impressive number of black belts in a sport
that has a high drop-out rate.

Moreover, many of its students have gone on to compete
nationally and internationally.

One of the first students was Neff's daughter, Carla, who
competed as a black belt at the national competition in Pittsburgh. She
was joined by Stifter and two competitors from Howard Lake, Rob Johnson
and Chris Schmidt. Stifter, who was 17 at the time, placed sixth in the
kumite competition.

"We went from there and we just set a goal to be one
of the best in the country," said Neff.

Other alumni include Rob Johnson who competed with the
U.S. team in Japan. Carla Neff also competed in Japan and was the gold medalist
in the women's 18-21 year-old rank at the Pan-American Games.

She went on to train with the U.S. Olympic team in their
training center in Colorado. Later, a group from the midwest was invited
to train there as well, and Stifter was made the assistant coach.

Neff added rather casually, "We were picking Junior
Olympic championships along the way."

However, Neff said that the big break came when Stifter
won the national championship in 1993. He was then selected for the U.S.
Karate team and went to England to compete in the Goodwill Games.

Then it was on to the world championships in Germany. Neff
accompanied him as team physician.

"Most of the injuries were in the jaw," he said.

The U.S. had come up against Germany, which had won three
of the last championships. The Germans expected they would face the previous
world champs, the Swedish.

However, the U.S. had beat the Swedish team to face Germany.
The Americans had been consistently beaten in their first match, and decided
to send out Stifter this time first.

"They [the Germans] were really surprised to face
the United States," said Neff.

"Other than winning the national championships back
in 1993, it's probably the most excited I've ever been," Stifter recalls.

Stifter won his match, and the U.S. came in second. Neff
beams with pride as he recalls how close the team came to winning.

Kihon

Kihon means the basics.

In a class, a student would learn kihon, kumite, and kata
to combine these into his/her working knowledge of karate.

However, the basic training of karate is not just fighting,
according to Neff. For students, the rewards can be anything from coordination,
to discipline, or confidence.

Students are sometimes referred to the school by guidance
counselors.

"We enjoy watching the kids change," said Neff.

Stifter observes that they often grow in maturity. Even
those who left the program, remarked to them later how they got something
out of the training.

While karate does include fighting, the two instructors
don't necessarily encourage fights. After all, karate forms start with a
self-defense move, such as a block. however, said Neff, "The best way
to avoid a fight, is to avoid a fight. People who don't are just stupid."

Stifter added, "If we find out that they (the students)
are using karate to bully in school, we just kick them out of the karate
club. We won't tolerate it."

Even in kumite competitions, hitting can get one fouled
out of a competition. If anything, karate trains the student to control
him or herself.

Neff sets up another demonstration. He pulls out the fabric
of his gi to form a hump on his stomach. Stifter gets into position as Neff
begins to explain.

"If he wants to barely touch that . . ." he said
as Stifter strikes the edge of the fabric," he should be able to do
that."

"If he wants to go two inches deeper," said Neff.
Stifter strikes and there is a small dent in the fabric.

"Now, if he wants to go as deep as my spine, he should
also be able to control it," Neff said.

Currently, there are 25 to 30 students in the club. The
rates are $20 a month. Neff and Stifter do not get paid, but do it for the
love of the sport.

The fees are put in a fund used to finance trips to camps,
competitions, or anything the students might need.

At times, the club has held rape prevention classes when
interest has been shown.

In general, the club doesn't like taking students younger
than seven, but as the evenings class lets out, students of all ages wave
good-bye to the two instructors.

In competition, Stifter is looking to make a good showing
at a tournament in California in late May. If he does well, he could be
selected for the U.S. team to go against the world in Russia.

The club teaches classes on Mondays and Thursdays at Winsted
Elementary, from 6 to 8:30 p.m.